Reading The Indigo Spell
by PrincessofLightNDarkness
Summary: I haven't really seen anybody do this one so I decided to start my own. Hopefully you enjoy it(: I don't own any of these awesome characters(obviously).
1. Summary

Sydney's POV

I was in my dorm room studying for a major History test, even though I knew most of it I wanted to review even though it was highly unlikely that I would forget anything.

I was interrupted by a knock on the door, I opened it to find Mrs. Weathers.

"Here" she said handing me an envelope "I would have waited till morning to give it to you but they said it was an emergency to be given and read now"

"Thank you" I closed the door wondering what could be so important that it couldn't wait until morning. I opened it, sat down and began to read.

_Dear Ms. Sydney Sage,_

_ I've given you this to notify you that you will be pulled into a spirit dream every midnight until you and your friends have finished the book, the spirit dream will be a creation of mine so you wont have to worry about a very close friend of yours using to much spirit. These friends I speak of that will be joining you are Rose, Dimitri, Lissa, Christian (Lissa's boyfriend), Sonya, Adrian, Jill, Eddie, and Angeline._

_Yours truly, Richelle Mead_

What book? I wondered, and who is this Richelle Mead? The message pondered in my head. I looked over at the clock over my small dresser. I had two hours till midnight, enough time for me to fall asleep.

I "woke up" in a room with crème colored walls and antique furniture. I looked around to find all my friends already there, along with Lissa and a Moroi sitting next to her with blue eyes and dark hair who I assume must be Christian.

"Ok does anybody know what this is about?" I asked sitting close but not to close to Adrian.

"No one really knows, we all just got this letter talking about some book from a stranger named Richelle Mead" Adrian responded. I looked over to see his beautiful emerald eyes staring at me. I tried not to blush and keep a straight face.

"Well, I don't see why I have to be here surrounded by _magic_" Acting disgusted trying to keep up an act of a very devoted alchemist.

"I believe this is the book" Sonya mentioned while holding up the book for all to see.

I looked at the book and then at Adrian ,he appeared as confused as I was. Why was my face and Adrian's in the cover? And more importantly, why was Marcus face in it?

"The Indigo Spell? What the hell does that mean? And why are Sydney's and Adrian's faces in it with some other dude with a weird thingy in his cheek" Rose said sitting down on Dimitri's lap.

"We wont know until we read it, lets read the summary first" Jill suggested

"I'll read it" Said Sonya.

**IN THE FACE OF A FORBIDDEN MOMENT THAT rocked Sydney to her core,**

"That sounds wrong" Said Christian

"Please pyro, we don't want to know what's in your mind" Adrian said causing Christian to roll his eyes.

**she struggles to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she finally tracks down the elusive, enigmatic Marcus Finch-**

"Who the fuck is Marcus Finch?" Rose interrupted

"You'll see" I said, seeming as the book is about me, it will most likely reveal many secrets of mine which made me uncomfortable.

**a former Alchemist who the organization denies exists, and who lives in shadows, on the run.**

"A former Alchemist? I never heard of such thing" Sonya said looking up at me with an expression of confusion.

"I didn't either until a couple of weeks ago" I said and she continued.

**With Marcus's help, Sydney realizes that the group she's been loyal to her whole life has been hiding the truth from her. Is it possible the her golden lily tattoo might have more power over her than she thinks?**

Everybody except Jill, Adrian, and Eddie looked confused.

**As she struggles to come to terms with that might mean, Sydney is compelled to use her growing magical powers to track down an evil magic user**

"What!" Everyone except Adrian and Jill yelled in shock and confusion.

"Magical powers? This is a joke, right Sydney?" Rose said in total shock.

I stayed silent not knowing what to say.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" She said still looking bewildered.

"Maybe because its not"

"But you're human" Lissa said calmly but still in shock.

"I am, but I'm able to use magic, many people refer to it as a "witch"

"Do you think you can show us something?" Dimitri asked politely but a little disbelieving

"Yeah sure" I began to sum up a fire ball. Almost everybody gasped in awe except, once again, Adrian and Jill.

"Can we continue?" I asked feeling uncomfortable with everybody staring at me. Sonya nodded and continued with an expression of bewilderment.

**who is targeting powerful young witches. Using magic goes against everything she always though she believed, but she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her special blood-or else she might be next.**

"This is just weird" Angeline said a bit ironically considering where she comes from.

**Forging her own way is harder than Sydney ever dreamed. Maybe by turning off her brain-and following her heart-she'll be able to finally figure out where she belongs.**

Everybody stayed silent. "Well I wasn't to keen on the fact that we had to _read _but after reading that summary I'm actually _excited _to begin reading the book" Rose said interrupting the silence.

"Yeah I'm with Rose on this one" Christian said while Adrian also nodded in agreement.

"Well then, shall we begin?" Sonya said.

"I want to read the first chapter!" Jill said. Going over to grab the book, she began to read.


	2. Chapter 1

I will try to update once or twice a week. Depending when school lets me. Enjoy(:

* * *

Sydney's POV

**THIS WASN'T THE FIRST TIME I'd been pulled out of bed for a crucial mission. It was, however, the first time I'd been subjected to such a personal line of questioning.**

"**Are you a virgin?"**

"Woah… if someone asked me that question I'd punch them in the face" Rose said.

"No one would _ever_ ask you that question because we all already know you're obviously _not _a virgin" Christian responded causing Rose to flip him off.

"**Huh?" I rubbed my sleepy eyes, just in case this was all some sort of bizarre dream that would disappear. An urgent phone call had dragged me out of bed five minutes ago, and I was having a little trouble adjusting.**

"What type of urgent phone call?" asked Adrian

"Urgent"

**My history teacher, Ms. Terwilliger, leaned closer and repeated the question in a stage whisper: "I said, are you a virgin?"**

"**Um, yes…"**

"Damn, you're still a virgin?" asked Christian

I blushed "Um, yes…"

"Leave her alone pyro, I'm pretty sure you were still a virgin before you got it in with Lissa" Adrian said.

"Yeah leave Sydney alone" Rose said. "Its ok Sydney someday we'll find you a man that will unvirginize you" She later whispered winking at me. I rolled my eyes.

**I was fully awake now and glanced uneasily around my dorm's lobby, making sure no one was around to witness this crazy exchange. I didn't have to worry. Aside from a bored looking desk attendant on the far side of the room, the lobby was empty, probably because no sane person would be up at this time of the night.**

"Hey! I'm up at that time of the night and I'm very sane!" Lissa said.

"Are you sure about that?" Adrian asked smirking evilly.

Lissa rolled her eyes "Yes"

"Yeah speaking from every Moroi I say we are very sane… well most of us" Christian said looking straight at Adrian when he said the last part.

"And speaking from every dhampir, specifically guardians" Pointing at the other guardians in the room, except Angeline. "I say we are very sane" said Rose.

"Hey! I'm sane!" Angeline piped in.

"Sure you are"

"It was just a thought I wasn't really thinking about Moroi and Dhampirs" I said "Now can we please continue" Looking at Jill.

**When Ms. Terwilliger's call had woken me, she'd demanded I meet her here for a "life-or-death" matter. Getting interrogated about my personal life wasn't quite what I'd expected.**

**She stepped back and sighed in relief. "Yes, of course. Of course you're a virgin."**

"This makes me sad, even the teacher knows it, we need to get you a boyfriend. You'd probably have never kissed anybody. I'm I right?" asked Rose.

Not even thinking of Brayden I said. "You're wrong. I've kissed a guy, plenty of times actually" sneaking a glance at Adrian who was smirking.

"Really! Who?" Rose said in excitement.

"Reading first, Sydney's love life later" Jill interrupted.

**She immediately snapped back to attention and pushed her wire-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose. They were always slipping down. "No time to explain. We have to go." She grabbed a hold of my arm, but I resisted and stayed where I was.**

"**Ma'am, it's three in the morning!" And then, just so she'd understand the severity of the situation: "On a school night."**

"Of course only Sydney would be worried that it's a school night" Eddie said teasingly. I just had to roll my eyes at that. Of course I would be worried about that, education is important and who I am.

"**Never mind that." She turned in the direction of the desk attendant and called across the room, "I'm taking Sydney Melrose with me. Mrs. Weathers can argue with me about curfew tomorrow."**

"That teacher of yours seems very persuasive" Dimitri observed.

**The attendant looked startled, but she was just some college student who'd been hired to sit there overnight. She was no match for the formidable Ms. Terwilliger, with her tall, gangly stature and birdlike face. The real authority keeping girls in my dorm was the security guard outside, but he simply nodded in a friendly way when Ms. Terwilliger dragged me past. It made me wonder just how many girls she's abducted in the middle of the night. **

"Where are you going?" Rose asked impatiently.

"You'll see"

"**I'm in my pajamas," I told her. It was the last protest I could offer as we reached her car, which was parked in a fire lane. She drove a red Volkswagen Beetle with flowers painted on the sides.**

"Of course you would notice every detail of the car" Adrian said looking at me smiling teasingly.

"Obviously" I smiled back

**Somehow, this didn't surprise me in the least.**

"**You'll be fine." she said, fishing car keys out of her massive velvet purse.**

"I hate purses" Angeline responded looking bored.

"You've never even carried one before" Said Jill rolling her eyes.

"Its not like I ever need to carry anything important with me" She said laying down against the couch.

"Then how will you be able to carry your phone or something?" Jill asked looking insulted.

"That's why I got these." Responded Angeline as if it was the most obvious answer while grabbing a hold of her boobs meaning her bra.

"O…kay. I think we should move on now" I said not sure of where this conversation was going.

**Around us, the desert night was cool and silent. Tall palm trees created dark, spider like shapes against the sky. Beyond them, a full moon and smattering of stars glittered. I wrapped my arms around myself, touching the soft fabric of my micro fleece robe. Underneath it, I had on full-length striped pajamas with fluffy beige slippers.**

"Beige?" Lissa asked.

"Yeah I don't really wear color. I prefer neutral colors."

**The ensemble worked well in my cozy dorm room but wasn't exactly practical for a Palm Springs night. But then. Going out in pajamas wasn't really practical in any place.**

**She unlocked the car, and I stepped gingerly inside, having to dodge empty paper coffee cups and old issues of **_**Utne Reader. **_**My neat sensibilities cringed at that kind of mess,**

"Sounds like a serious case of OCD" Christian said looking serious. I just rolled my eyes, that's not exactly the case, I just don't like mess.

**but it was the least of my worries right now.**

"**Ms. Terwilliger," I said, once we were driving through the suburban streets. "What's going on?" Now that we were out of the dorm, I hoped she'd start talking sense. I hadn't forgotten he "life-or-death" comment and was beginning to grow nervous.**

"What could be so important?" Asked Rose.

Eddie snorted. "Probably school related work. Nerds stuff" Causing me to roll my eyes once again knowing it was nothing of the sort, I couldn't wait to see his face in shock once its revealed our teacher is a witch.

**Her eyes were on the road ahead of us, and lines of worry marked her angular face. "I need you to cast spell."**

Exactly what I've been waiting for, Eddie gasped. "Wait… don't tell me our teacher is a… witch?" He asked in shock. I just nodded.

Putting the pieces together he asked. "So is that why you're always disappearing?"

I thought about it. "Partly" I finally decided since everybody was soon to find out about me and Adrian. That made me a bit worrisome.

**I froze as I tried to process her words. Not long ago, this proclamation would've sent me into protests and fits of revulsion. Not that I was comfortable with it now. Magic still freaked me out. Ms. Terwilliger taught at my private high school, Amberwood Prep, by day and was a witch at night. She said I, too. Possessed a natural affinity for magic and had managed to teach me some spells, despite my best efforts to resist. I actually had a few good reasons for wanting to avoid anything arcane, Aside from inborn beliefs about magic being wrong.**

"Magic is not wrong. Its natural." Lissa said looking a bit offended.

"I know. I was just thought that way by Alchemists beliefs."

**I simply didn't want to get caught up in any more supernatural affairs than I had to. I already spent my days as part of a secret society that kept vampires secret from the human world. That and my schoolwork were enough to keep anyone busy.**

**Nonetheless, her magical training had gotten me out of some dangerous situation recently, and I was no longer quick to dismiss it. So, her suggesting I perform magic wasn't the weirdest thing going on here.**

"Did you use it when we ran into trouble with the warriors?" asked Dimitri politely.

"Yes." I smiled weakly.

"**Why would you need me for that?" I asked. There were few cars out, but occasionally, passing headlights would cast a ghostly light over us. "You're a million times more powerful. I can't cast a fraction of the things you can."**

"**Power is one thing," she admitted. "But there are other limitations and factors at work here. I can't cast this particular spell."**

**I crossed my arms and slouched back in the seat. If I kept focusing on the practical aspects, I could ignore how worried I was growing. "And it couldn't have waited until morning?"**

"**No," she said gravely. "It could not."**

"Well she seems very desperate, it must be something very important" Sonya commented.

**Something about the tone of her voice sent chills down my spine, and I fell silent as we continued our drive. We were headed outside of the city and suburbs, into the wilds of the true desert. The farther we drove from civilization, the darker it became. Once we were off the freeway, there were no street-lights or houses in sight. Spiky desert shrubs created dark shapes along the side of the road that put in mind of crouching animals. Ready to pounce. **_**There's no one out here, **_**I thought. **_**And no one back at Amberwood knows you're here either.**_

"Aw, Sage is scared. Don't worry I'll protect you." Adrian said teasingly looking at me, my heart fluttered. From the corner of my eye I caught Sonya with an expression of realization, she smiled. Has she figured us out? Remembering that she's also a spirit user.

**I shifted uneasily as I recalled her virgin question. Was I going to be a sacrifice in some unholy ritual?**

"Nope, since you're still here" Christian said stating the obvious.

**I wished that I'd thought to bring my cell phone-not that I could have told my organization, the Alchemists, that I was spending so much time with a magic user. And not just any magic user-one who was teaching **_**me **_**to become one too. Better risk being sacrificed than face the Alchemists' wrath.**

"I would have come to save you" Adrian said and I smiled knowing he would have come through with it.

**Twenty minutes later, Ms. Terwilliger finally pulled to a stop along the side of a dusty one-lane road that seemed to be a direct route to nowhere. She got out of the car and mentioned for me to do the same. It was colder here than it had been back at Amberwood. Looking up into the night sky, I caught my breath. Free of the city lights, the stars were now out in full force. I could see the Milky Way and a dozen constellations usually hidden to the naked eye. **

"**Stargaze later," she said curtly. "We need to hurry, before the moon progresses much farther."**

"If you want, we could go stargazing someday." Adrian whispered low enough for only me to hear.

"Sure, I'd love that." I whispered back smiling.

**A moonlight ritual, a barren desert, virgin sacrifice… what had I just foolishly walked into? The way Ms. Terwilliger pushed me into magic always annoyed me, but I never thought she posed a threat. Now I berated myself for being so naïve. **

**She tossed a duffel bag over one shoulder and headed off into a desolate stretch of land, dotted with rocks and scraggly vegetation. Even with the brilliant celestial display there wasn't much light out here, yet she walked purposefully, as though she knew exactly where she was going. I dutifully followed, wincing as I crossed the rocky ground. My fuzzy slippers had never been intended for this sort of terrain.**

"Is anything interesting ever going to happen?" Rose interrupted looking, once again, impatient.

"It's a nerd mind. What do you expect?" Said Eddie joking around.

"True" She said. "But still"

"Hey! Nerd here. Can we continue?" I asked jokingly but serious due to the fact that I was nervous for the "Big revelation" that was soon to be exposed.

"Did she just joke?" She asked looking around. "I didn't know Sydney could joke, well actually, I'm not even sure any alchemists can" Everybody else nodded their heads in agreement.

Alchemists actually do joke, but mainly offensive things about Moroi, Dhampirs, and feeders. But I wasn't about to tell them that.

"That's because you don't know Sydney" Adrian said defensively.

"Oh and _you_ know her" Rose said sarcastically.

"Actually. I do" He said looking serious.

"Oh _really_? Tell me about her" She challenged him. I knew they were soon to find out about me and Adrian, but not right now, I wanted to wait until that moment came.

"Jill" I said looking at her sending an unspoken message for her to continue before this got out of hand.

"I think we should continue with the reading" Jill said.

"No, no, no. I want to know" She said looking suspiciously between me and Adrian.

"Dimitri" I said looking at him.

"Come on Roza, let it go." And she did.

"**Here," she said when we reached a small clearing. She carefully set down the duffel bag to rifle through it. "This'll do."**

**The desert that was so mercilessly hot in the day became cold at night, but I was still sweating. Probably my own anxiety had more to do with that than the temperature or heavy pajamas. I retied my robe more tightly, making a perfect knot. I found that kind of detail and routine soothing.**

Rose snorted. "Weirdo" I rolled my eyes which seemed like the a hundredth time in about five minutes.

**Ms. Terwilliger produced a large oval mirror with a scalloped silver frame. She set it down in the middle of the clearing, glanced up at the sky, and then shifted the mirror over a little. "Come here, Miss Melbourne."**

"Isn't it Melrose?" Sonya asked.

"Yes. But she had mispronounced it on the first day of school and she just stuck to it." I replied.

**She pointed to a spot opposite her, on the other side of the mirror. "Sit there and make yourself comfortable."**

**At Amberwood, I went by the name Sydney Melrose, rather than my true one Sydney Sage. Ms. Terwilliger had gotten my made-up name wrong on the first day of class, and it, unfortunately, stuck.**

"Should have waited" Sonya looked at me apologetically.

"Its fine" Assuring her.

**I followed her directions, not that I could really get all that comfortable out here. I was pretty sure I could hear some large animal scuffling out in the brush and added "coyotes" to my mental list of dangers I faced out here, right below "magic use" and "lack of coffee."**

"Talk about being paranoid. When I used to live with the keepers, we would kill any animal in a second." Angeline said. "And what's with you and coffee?"

"I just love coffee, keeps me energized." Which was my usual response when asked the same question.

"**Now then. Let's get started." Ms. Terwilliger peered at me with eyes that were dark and frightening in the desert night. "Are you wearing anything metal? You need to take it off."**

"**No, I-oh. Wait."**

Uh oh.

**I reached around my neck and unfastened a delicate gold chain that held a small cross. I'd had the necklace for years but recently given it to someone else, for content and comfort.**

Me, Jill, and Adrian looked at each other for half a second.

**He'd given it back to me recently, by our mutual friend Jill Mastrano Dragomir. **

"Its so weird to say my own name." Jill uttered.

**Even now, I could picture the angry look on her face as she'd stormed up to me at school and thrust the cross into my hand without a word.**

"Why were you so mad at Sydney?" Rose asked Jill looking confused.

"Because… you'll see" Jill replied slyly.

**I stared at the cross now as it gleamed in the moonlight. A queasy feeling welled up in the pit of my stomach as I thought about Adrian.**

"Adrian? What?" Rose asked still looking confused along with everybody else.

**I'd done so**- Jill paused looking at me if she should continue. I nodded. I might as well get it over with.

**before he professed his love to me,**

Everybody gasped except for Sonya and Jill. They all looked straight at Adrian who just shrugged them off.

"Wha-" Rose began but was interrupted by Jill.

**something that had caught me totally off guard a few weeks ago. But maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised. The more I looked back-and I did so all the time- the more I began to recall telltale signs that should have tipped me off to his feelings. I'd just been too blind to notice at the time.**

"Of course you wouldn't have noticed, considering your low experience with guys" Rose said still looking startled.

**Of course, it wouldn't have mattered if I'd seen it coming or not. Adrian was totally unsuitable for me, and it had nothing to do with his many vices or potential descent into insanity. Adrian was a vampire. True, he was a Moroi-one of the good, living vampires-but it made no difference. Humans and vampires couldn't be together. **

I could hear a silent agreement amongst half the group.

**This was one point the Moroi and Alchemists stood firmly together on. It was still amazing to me that Adrian had voiced those feelings to me. It was amazing that he could even have them or that he'd had the nerve to kiss me,**

Everybody gasped in shock. Jill continued before anybody said anything.

**even if it was a kiss that had left me dizzy and breathless.**

"What!" Rose managed. Everybody else was shocked into silence.

**I'd had to reject him, of course. **

"Good" Rose said.

**My training would allow nothing less. Our situation here in Palm Springs forced the two of us to constantly be together in social situations, and it had been rough since his declaration. For me, it wasn't just awkwardness of our new relationship. I… well, I missed him.**

"Awww" Jill said.

**Before this debacle, he and I had been good friends and spent a lot of tine together. I'd gotten used to his smirky smile and the quick banter that always flowed between us.**

"Of course you missed everything about me. Who wouldn't?" Adrian said leaning back on the couch.

**Until those things were gone, I hadn't realized how much I relied on them. How much I needed them. I felt empty inside… which was ridiculous, of course. Why should I care so much about one vampire?**

"Because you love me." Adrian said looking at me. I stared back before becoming fully aware of the audience. I turned around quickly blushing.

**Sometimes it made me angry. Why had he ruined such a good thing between us? Why had he made me miss him so much? **

"Sorry but I had too" not looking sorry at all but I understood it was right but wrong at the same time.

**He had to have known it was impossible for us to be together.**

"I did know but I didn't care"

**I couldn't have feelings for him. I **_**couldn't. **_**If we'd lived among the keepers-a group of uncivilized vampires, human, and dhampirs-maybe he and I could have… no. Even if I had feelings for him-and I firmly told myself I didn't-it was wrong for us to even consider such a relationship. **

"Well someone was in denial" Angeline said going back to looking bored.

**Now Adrian spoke to me as little as possible. And always, always, he watched me with a haunted look in his green eyes, one that made my heart ache and-**

"**Ah! What is that?"**

"Did you see an animal?" Christian asked.

"No" He looked disappointed.

**I squirmed as Ms. Terwilliger dumped a bowl full of dried leaves and flowers over my head. I'd been so fixated on the cross and my memories that I hadn't seen her coming. **

"**Rosemary," she said matter-of-factly.**

"Its me!" Rose said half-jokingly.

Lissa rolled her eyes. "Not you"

"**Hyssop. Anise. Don't do that." I'd reached up to pull some of the leaves out of my hair. "You need that for the spell."**

Everybody inclined looking interested.

"**Right," I said, getting back to business. I set the cross carefully on the ground, trying to clear my mind of greed, green eyes. "The spell that only I can do. Why is that again?"**

"Its _so_ obvious you like Adrian" said Jill.

"Denial" Angeline said and the rest surprisingly agreed but I could tell they still found it strange.

"**Because it has to be done by a virgin," she explained. I tried no to grimace. Her words implied that she was not a virgin, and even if that made sense for a forty-year-old woman, it still wasn't a thought I wanted to spend a lot of time on.**

"Hey. You never know. Ever heard of the 40 year old virgin?" asked Christian.

"Isn't that a movie?" asked Jill.

"Yes it is Jailbait. It's a _romance_ movie. With Steve Carell, right pyro?" Adrian smirked at him.

Christian shrugged "And you would know that because…" Getting back at him.

"Shut it you two. How would _both _of you know that?" Interrupted Rose.

"I stumbled upon it." said Adrian.

"Yeah me too"

"**That, and the person we're looking for has shielded herself from me. But you? You she won't expect."**

**I looked down at the shining mirror and understood. "This is a scrying spell. Why aren't we doing one I did before?"**

**Not that I was eager to repeat the spell. I'd used it to find someone, and it had involved me staring into a bowl of water for hours.**

"That must be weird to just stare at water" said Eddie. Remembering, I actually was more frustrated than thinking about it being weird.

**Still, now that I knew how to do it. I knew I could perform it again. Besides, I didn't like the idea of walking into a spell I knew nothing about. Words and herbs were one thing, but what else might she ask me? Endanger my soul? Give up my blood?**

"Wow Sage, being a little dramatic there weren't you?" I ignored him. I was just freaking out that we were in the middle of no where about to do a spell.

"**That spell only works for someone you know," she explained. "This one will help you find someone you've never met before."**

**I frowned. As much as I didn't like magic, I did like problem solving-**

"I failed at problem solving because it never interest me." said Rose.

"Yeah _that's _the reason why. Not because you sucked or anything" Christian responded sarcastically. Lissa slapped his arm.

**and the puzzles magic often presented intrigued me. **

"**How will I know who to look for, then?"**

**Ms. Terwilliger handed me a photograph. My eyes had adjusted to the darkness, and I looked into the face of a pretty young woman. There was a striking resemblance between her and my teacher, though it wasn't initially obvious. Rather than Ms. Terwilliger's dull brown hair, this woman's was dark, nearly black. She was also much more glamorous, dressed in a black satin evening gown that was a far cry from Ms. Terwillinger's usual hippie attire. Despite those ostensible differences, the two women shared the same high cheekbones and aquiline eyes.**

**I glanced back up. "She's related to you."**

"A witch?" asked Sonya.

"Yes"

"An evil one." Adrian said in the side note.

"**She's my older sister,' Ms. Terwilliger confirmed, her voice remarkably flat. Olde? I would've guessed this woman was at least the years younger.**

"**Is she missing?' I asked. When I'd scried before, it had been to find a kidnapped friend.**

"You used magic to find me?" asked Sonya.

"Yes"

"Well thank you"

"You're welcome."

**Ms. Terwilliger's lips twitched. "Not in a way you're thinking." From the never-ending duffel bag, she produced a small leather book and opened it to a marked page. Squinting at where she indicated, I could make out handwritten Latin words describing the mirror and herbal concotion she'd dumped on me. Following that were directions on how to use the spell. No bloodletting thankfully.**

"**It sounds too simple," I said suspiciously. I'd learned that spells that only had a few steps and components usually required a lot of mental energy. I'd passed out from the other scrying spell.**

"Using magic can cause you to faint?" asked Dimitri

"Yes," confirming it. "Magic requires lots concentration"

"I still cant believe you're a… witch" Rose said 'witch' with a sense of doubtfulness. I just shrugged. Not always quite believing it myself, but I've come to accept it.

**She nodded, guessing my thoughts. "It takes a lot of focus-more than the last one. But, as much as you don't want to hear this, your strength has grown enough that you'll probably have an easier time than before."**

**I scowled. She was right. I didn't want to hear that.**

**Or did I?**

"You doubt yourself a lot" Sonya observed.

**Part of me knew I should refuse to go along with this madness. Another part of me worried she'd abandon me in the desert if I didn't help. And still another part was insanely curious to see how this would all work.**

**Taking a deep breath, I recited the book's Incantation and then set the picture in the middle of the mirror.**

"Some weird creepy witch shit about to happen?" asked Christian.

I tried not to roll my eyes "Yes"

**I repeated the incantation and removed the picture. Leaning forward, I stared into the shining surface, trying to clear my mind and let myself become one with darkness and moonlight. A hum of energy coursed through me, much more quickly than I expected. Nothing changed in the mirror right away, though. Only my reflection peered back at me, the poor lighting dulling my blond hair, which looked terrible both from sleeping on it and having a bunch of dried plants hanging in its strands. **

**The energy continued to build in me, growing surprisingly warm and exhilarating.**

"I would say that is a similar feeling when I use spirit." said Lissa. Adrian, Sonya, and Rose nodded their heads in agreement. Though Rose is a dhampir with no use of magic, I suppose she had felt spirit in use when she was bonded to Lissa.

**I closed my eyes and sank into it. I felt like I was floating in the moonlight, like I **_**was **_**the moonlight. I could've stayed that way forever.**

"**Do you see anything?"**

**Ms. Terwillinger's voice was an unwelcome interruption to my blissful state, but I obediently opened my eyes and looked into the mirror. My reflection was gone. A silvery gray mist hung in front of a building, but I knew the mist wasn't physical. It was magically produced, a mental barrier to keep me from seeing the image that lay beyond it. Strengthening my will, I pushed my mind passed the barrier, and after a few moments, the mist shattered.**

"**I see**

"Dead people" interrupted Christian.

"_Seriously _pyro"

"What? I have nothing better to do, besides being a pyromaniac, …" he looked at Adrian "…than watch movies while your girlfriend and everybody else is so busy back at court"

"Aw…" said Rose in a sweet innocent voice as if speaking to a child "Is someone feeling a bit lonely?" Teasing him.

He snorted. "Please. Don't you not know who you're speaking to? You know? The guy who spent most of his life friendless just because of who his parents are?" Lissa took hold of his hand and smiled at him.

"Can we please continue" said Jill.

"Yes." we all said.

**a building." My voice echoed oddly in the night. "An old Victorian house. Dark red, with a traditional covered porch. There are hydrangea bushes in front of it. There's a sign too, but I can't read it."**

"**Can you tell where the house is?" My teacher's voice seemed very far away. "Look around it."**

**I tried to pull back, to extend my vision beyond the house. It took a few moments, but slowly, the image panned out as though I were watching a movie, revealing a neighborhood of similar houses, all Victorian with wide porches and creeping vines. They were a beautiful, perfect piece of history set in modern world.**

Angeline groaned "Can you not find something without involving history in it?"

"History is an important part of understanding how we live our life now"

"But its so _boring._ Who cares?" she said looking more bored than ever.

"Sydney does" said Adrian.

"Correctly. I do because-"

"Jill can you hurry up and read before Sydney goes on one of her lessons on why history is so important." interrupted Eddie and I glared at him.

"**Nothing exact," I told her. "Just some quaint residential street."**

"**Go back further. See the larger picture."**

**I did, and it was like I drifted up into the sky, looking down upon the neighborhood the way some soaring bird would. The houses extended into more neighboorhoods, which eventually gave way to industrial and commercial areas. I continued moving back. The business became more and more densely packed. More streets crisscrossed between them. The buildings grew taller and taller, eventually materializing into a familiar skyline. **

"**Los Angeles," I said. "The house is on the outskirts of Los Angeles."**

**I heard a sharp intake of breath, followed by: "Thank you, Miss Melbourne. That will be all."**

"What's in Los Angeles? Is it something bad? What's happening?" standing up Rose asked impatiently.

"It'll be explained in the following."

"Patience my Roza." said Dimitri. Crossing her arms she sat down.

**A hand suddenly waved across my field of vision, shattering the city image. Also shattered was that state of euphoria.**

"Eu- what?" asked Angeline confused.

"A feeling of extreme happiness."

"Thanks for helping me with my English homework."

I frowned. "You're welcome" I said annoyed that I've been tricked.

**I was no longer floating, no longer made of light. I came crashing down to reality, down to the rocky desert landscape and my stuffy pajamas. I felt exhausted and shaky, like I might faint. Ms. Terwilliger handed me a thermos full of orange juice, which I drank greedly. As the nutrients hit my system and strengthened me, I began to feel a little better. Intense magic use depleted blood sugar.**

"**Does that help?" I asked, once I'd downed the thermos. A nagging voice inside me started to chastise about how many calories were in orange juice, but I ignored it.**

"Who cares about the calories? You look good." said Rose.

"I agree." said Adrian. Both looked a little surprised to be agreeing on something.

"I used to care a lot but know not as much." looking up at Adrian since he was the reason I didn't care as much about my insecurities.

"**Was that what you wanted to know?"**

**Ms. Terwilliger gave me a smile that didn't extend to her eyes. "It helps, yes. Was it what I wanted?" She stared off into the distance. "No, not exactly. I was hoping you'd name some other city. Some city far, far away."**

**I picked up my cross and refastened it around my neck. The familiar object brought on a sense of normality after what I'd just done. It also made me feel guily, looking back on the euphoric high the magic had given me. Humans weren't supposed to wield magic-and they certainly weren't supposed to enjoy it. Running my fingers over the cross's surface, I found myself thinking of Adrian again.**

"There you are thinking of the irresistible me again" Adrian said cheerfully.

**Had he ever worn it? Or had he just kept it around for luck? Had his fingers traced the cross's shape like mine often did?**

"I never let it go. I kept it with me at all times." he smiled at me and I smiled back.

**Ms. Terwilliger began gathering her things. When she stood up, I followed suit. "What does it mean exactly ma'am?" I asked.**

"**That I saw Los Angeles?"**

**I followed her back toward the car, and she didn't answer right away. When she did, her voice was uncharacteristically grim. "It mean that she's much closer than I would like. It also means, whether you want to or not, you're going to have to work on improving your magical skills very, very quickly." **

"You must've been _so_ excited for that." Chrisitan said sarcastically.

**I came to a halt. Suddenly, I felt angry. Enough was enough. I was exhausted and ached all over. She'd dragged me out here in the middle of the night and now had the presumption to make a statement like that when she knew how I felt about magic? Worse, her words frightened me. What did I have to do with this? This was her spell, her cause. Yet, she'd given the directive with such force, such certainty, that it almost seemed as though **_**I **_**was the reason we'd come out here to this wasteland.**

"You hate magic _that _bad?" asked Lissa.

"I _used_ to but not anymore."

"**Ma'am-" I began.**

**Ms. Terwilliger spun around and leaned toward me so that there were only a few inches between us.**

"Creepy teacher" said Rose.

**I gulped, swallowing whatever outraged words I'd been about to utter. I'd never seen her look like this. She wasn't scary, not exactly, but there was an intensity I'd never seen before, far different from the usual scattered teacher I knew. She also looked… frightned. **_**Life or death.**_

"**Sydney," she said, in a rare use of my first name. "Let me assure you that this is not some trick on my part. You will improve upon your skills, whether you like it or not.**

"So demanding" I heard someone utter.

**And its not because I'm cruel, not because I'm trying to fulfill some selfish desire. It's not even because I hate seeing you waste your ability."**

"I don't know what I find more weird. You being a witch or Adrian's confession." Rose said not looking as surprised as before.

"**Then why?" I asked in a small voice. "Why do I need to learn more?"**

**The wind whispered around us, blowing some of the dried leaves and flowers from my hair. The shadows cast took on an ominous feel, and the moonlight and starlight that had seemed so divine earlier now felt cold and harsh,**

"Sounds like a horror movie." said Christian.

"**Because," Ms. Terwilliger said. "It's for your own protection."**

"Wow" said Jill. "Dramatic ending of a chapter. Who wants to read next?"

"I will." said Sonya. "Chapter two…"


	3. Chapter 2

I apologize in advance if I put to many lines from the book all at once. I did it because in some parts Richelle is just describing things and also because I only type when I think the right time comes for someone to comment.

Also, sorry for taking so long. I had many distractions: school, homework, sickness, and babysitting the Children of the Corn aka my niece's and nephew.

Thank you for the support!(:

* * *

Sydney's POV

**MS. TERWILLIGER REFUSED to say much more after that. She drove us back to Amberwood and hardly seemed to know I was there. She kept muttering things to herself like, "Not enough time" and "Need more proof." **

"I'm not far off when I had said your teacher is creepy" said Rose looking serious.

"Well … not exactly, I'd just say she's demanding and a bit strange."

"Strange, creepy, same thing"

I sighed. "You may continue Sonya"

**When she finally dropped me off, I tried pressing her for more information.**

"**What was all that about protecting myself?" I asked. "Protection from what?"**

**We were parked in the fire lane again, **

"Who cares about parking in the fire lane?" said Christian like it was no big deal.

**and she still wore that distracted look. "I'll explain later, in our session tomorrow"**

"**I can't," I reminded her. "I'm leaving right after my regular classes. Remember? I have a flight to catch. I told you about it last week. And yesterday. And earlier today.**

"Sounds like a serious case of Alzheimer's" said Dr. Ozera. Considering this is the second time he gives a "diagnoses."

I just rolled my eyes. "When someone is very distracted and worried they tempt to forget certain things." Everybody nodded in agreement.

**That brought her back to attention. "Did you? Well, then. I suppose we'll make do with what we must. I'll see what I can have for you in the morning.**

"Have what?" asked Rose looking slightly impatient.

"A book"

"Of course. Something boring." she said looking disappointed.

**I left her for my bed after that, not that I could get much sleep. And when I showed up to her history class the next morning. She was true to her word. Before the bell rang, she walked up to my desk and handed me an old book with a cracked red leather cover. The title was in Latin and translated to **_**Elements of Battle,**_** which sent a chill down my spine. Spells to create light and invisibility were one thing.**

"Wait… A _spell _book? What is this? Harry Potter?" asked Rose.

"Harry Potter?" I asked in confusion.

"It's a book made into a movie about witches and wizards, you know, a _fun _read." said Jill.

"Excuse me, but _fun _and _read_ should _not _be in the same sentence." said Adrian looking appalled.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty surprised Rose actually _knows _about this" Christian said and they all looked up at her.

"Ok, lets get back to invading Sydney's personal thoughts and life." she ignored the stares.

**There was a practicality to them that I could most rationalize. But battle spell? Something told me I might have a little trouble with those.**

"**Reading material for the plane," she said.**

"Reading in the plane? You know what I do when I'm in the plane?" Rose said.

"Scream, faint, and yell. Ghost! Ghost! Ghosts everywhere! Casper is that you?" Exaggerated Christian intimidating a look of fright while Adrian just laughed.

Rose glared at him. "Shut. Up."

Lissa smacked Christian in the arm. "Stop antagonizing Rose."

Not knowing who the heck was Casper, I looked at Sonya for her to continue.

**She spoke in her usual, addled scholar voice, but I could see a glint of that anxiety from last night in her eyes. "Focus only on the first section. I trust you'll do your usual thorough job-and then some."**

"Why is she so worried?" asked Dimitri.

"Because of an evil witch" Me, Adrian, and Jill all said at the same time.

"So what did this "Evil witch" do?" asked Angeline.

"Well, let's just say that she was the cause of innocent people disappearing." I said not explaining the details since they were soon to find out the entire story.

"Oh shit! The Blair Witch Project." Christian said causing Adrian to roll his eyes.

**None of the other arriving students paid any attention to us. My last class of the day was an independent study session on late-antique history, **

"_Bo-ring"_ said Rose.

**which she served my mentor for. More often than not, she used the session as a passive-aggressive way to teach me magic. So, her giving me books like this was nothing out of the ordinary.**

"**And," she added, "if you could find out where that neighborhood is, it would be extremely useful."**

"To find a specific road in Los Angeles can be quite difficult" commented Sonya. I nodded in agreement.

**I was speechless for a few moments. Locate one neighborhood in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area?** **"That's … a very large area to cover," I said at last, choosing my words carefully with witnesses around.**

"Its always a good idea to chose what you're going to say when its something important because you never know who may be listening and later may become a potential threat." Dimitri said in approval.

**She nodded and pushed her glasses up her nose. "I know. Most people probably couldn't do it." And on that semi-complementary note, she returned to her desk at the front of the classroom.**

"**What neighborhood?" asked a new voice.**

**Eddie Castile had just arrived and slid into a neighboring desk.**

"There you are" said Jill pointing at Eddie.

"There I am" he smiled at her childish act.

**Eddie was a dhampir-possessing a mix of human and vampire DNA that had been passed down from days when the two races mixed. For all intents and purposes, though, he was indistinguishable from an ordinary human. With his sandy-colored hair and brown eyes, he also bore enough resemblance to me to support our cover story that we are twins.**

"Its kind of weird having other people describe you." said Eddie.

**In reality, Eddie was here at Amberwood as a bodyguard for Jill. Dissidents among her own kind, the Moroi, were hunting her, and even though we'd seen no sign of the since coming to Palm Springs, Eddie was always vigilant and ready to pounce.**

"Like a true guardian is suppose to" said Dimitri like a proud father. Eddie looked happy he's been praised upon a "God" as Rose has put it in the past.

**I slipped the red leather book into messenger bag. "Don't ask. Another of her wacky assignments." None of my friends-save Adrian-knew about my involvement with Ms. Terwilliger's magic use. Well, and Jill by default. All Moroi possessed some sort of elemental magic. Adrian's was a rare and powerful one called spirit, which could work miracles of healing. **

"Me being born was a miracle in itself" said Adrian making everybody roll their eyes.

**He's used that magic to bring Jill back from the dead when assassins had killed her. Doing so had made Jill "shadow-kissed"-that is, it created a psychic bond between them, one that allowed Jill to feel his emotions and sometimes see through his eyes. As a result, Jill knew more about what went between Adrian and me than I liked.**

"Sorry, I don't mean too" Jill apologized.

"Its okay. Its not your fault."

**I took my car keys out of my bag and reluctantly handed them over to Eddie. He was the only one I trusted to drive my car, and I always let him borrow it when I left town, in case he needed to run errands for our group. "Here you go. I better get it back in one piece. Do **_**not **_**let Angeline near the driver's seat."**

"Hey! Its not like I would ever do anything bad to it!" she looked insulted.

"Sure" Not believing a thing she just said, considering her track record with trouble.

**He grinned. "Do I look suicidal?**

Angeline frowned and looked at him with annoyance.

**I probably won't ever use it. Are you sure you don't want me to drive you to the airport later?"**

"**You'd miss class," I said.**

"There's my Sage, worrying about other people's education"

**The only reason I was able to cut school early was because of the unusual nature of my independent study.**

"More like a freak of nature" uttered Angeline and I glared at her.

"**I wouldn't mind, believe me. I've got a science test." He grimaced and lowered his voice. "I hated physics the first time you know."**

"I don't mind physics but I prefer chemistry" I said in which Eddie gave me a weird look.

**I couldn't help a smile. Both Eddie and I were eighteen and had graduated high school, me through home schooling and him through an elite Moroi and dhampir academy. We couldn't pose as students without going through the motions of class, however. While I didn't mind extra work, Eddie wasn't as taken with love of learning as I was.**

"Who loves to repeat learning all those classes?… oh shit, wait… Sydney does." smirked Rose.

Ignoring her. "Having knowledge and learning new things makes for a better future." she ignored me just as I had.

"**No thanks," I told him. "A cab will be fine."**

**The bell rang, and Eddie straightened up in his desk. As Ms. Terwilliger called the class to order, he whispered to me, "Jill's really bummed she can't go."**

"**I know," I murmured back. "But we all know why she can't."**

"**Yeah," he agreed. "what I don't know is why she's mad at you."**

"Now I do." said Eddie looking as though he'd solved a puzzle.

**I turned toward the front of the classroom and pointedly ignored him.**

"I really felt the love when you ignored me"

"Sorry" I murmured

"Its okay. You had your reasons."

**Jill was the only one who knew about Adrian's declaration of love,**

Rose gasped.

"_Really?_ I thought we've been through this" said Adrian looking annoyed.

"Its still a bit shocking" she looked at me. I just shrugged.

**thanks to that bond. It was another one of those things I wished hadn't been shared, but Adrian couldn't help it. Although Jill knew vampire-human romances were wrong, she couldn't forgive me for hurting Adrian so badly. To make things worse, she was probably personally experiencing some of his pain.**

"Sorry" I looked at both of them feeling guilty for putting them through that.

"The past is the past." said Jill and Adrian agreed giving me one of his breathtaking smiles which brought joy out of my guilt.

**Even if our other friends didn't know**

"We do now" someone said, most likely Angeline.

**what had occurred, it was obvious that something wasn't right with Jill and me. Eddie had picked up on it right away and immediately interrogated me. I'd given him a vague excuse about Jill not liking some rules I'd instated for her here at school. Eddie hadn't bought that, but Jill had been just as close-mouthed on the matter, leaving him clueless and frustrated.**

"You two _really_ annoyed the crap out of me"

"Sorry" we both murmured which for me, it felt like the hundredth time.

"Its ok" he smiled looking mostly at Jill.

**The school day zipped by, and before long, I was in a taxi and on my way to the airport. I'd packed light and only had one small suitcase**

"Filled with boring clothes" said Rose actually looking a bit bored.

**and my messenger bag, both of which could be carried on. For what seemed like the hundredth time, I took out a small silver and white gift bag and examined its contents. Inside was an expensive crystal sun catcher, the kind meant to be hung on a porch or in a window. It depicted two doves in flight, facing each other. Wrapping it back in its tissue paper, I returned it to its gift bag and then my own bag. I hoped it would be an acceptable gift for the upcoming event.**

"I loved the gift, it was beautiful" Sonya reassured me.

**I was going to a vampire wedding.**

**I'd never been to one before.**

"No shit." Christian said sarcastically.

**Probably no Alchemist had. Although we worked with the Moroi to protect their existence, the Alchemist made it clear they wanted no involvement that went beyond business contact. After recent events, however. Both groups had decided it would be good to improve our professional relations. Since this wedding was a big deal, a few other Alchemists and I had been invited.**

"I enjoyed your presence there, not too sure about the other two" said Sonya.

"Yeah, I heard that one Alchemist guy…

"Ian"

"Whatever…was talking shit before the wedding even began" said Rose, with one of her pissed off looks.

Well, I guess he was heard. I thought. Idiot, considering he was in a room full of Moroi and dhampirs.

**I knew the couple, and in theory, I was excited to see them married.**

"Thank you, you're not like other Alchemists" responded Sonya.

"Trust me ,she's _not_ like other Alchemists" said Adrian.

**It was the rest of the event that made me nervous: a huge social gathering of Moroi and dhampirs. Even with other Alchemists there, we'd be hopelessly outnumbered. Being in Palm Springs with Eddie, Jill, and the others had gone a long way in improving my feeling towards their kind. I got along with that little group well and now considered them friends.**

"Am I considered your friend?" asked Rose looking a bit hurt.

"Of course! Or else I wouldn't have helped you get out of that mess you were in." Though it was half a lie due to the fact I was blackmailed by Abe. She seemed content with the answer.

**But even as liberal as I was in such matters, I still possessed a lot of the other Alchemists had inside the vampiric world. Maybe Moroi and dhampirs weren't creatures of evil, like I'd once believed, but they certainly weren't human.**

"Obviously" someone said.

**I kind of wished my Palm Springs friends were coming with me,**

Jill looking upset, replied "Yeah us too"

**but that had been out of the question. The whole point of Jill and the rest of us being in Palm Springs was to hide her away and keep her safe from those trying to kill her. Both Moroi and Strigoi tended to avoid sunny, desert regions. If she suddenly showed up at a major Moroi function, it would defeat the whole purpose. Eddie and Angeline, another dhampir protecting her at Amberwood, had to stay behind as well. Only Adrian and I had been invited to the wedding, and we were thanfully on separate flights.**

"Sage… that hurts" putting his hand in his heart pretending to be in pain.

**If anyone had noticed that he and I were traveling together, it could attract attention back to Palm Springs which could expose Jill. Adrian's flight wasn't even leaving from Palm Springs. He was flying out by way of Los Angeles, two hours west, just to make sure we weren't linked together.**

**I had to connect to a different flight in Los Angeles, which reminded me of Ms. Terwilliger's task. Find one neighborhood in all of Los Angeles's greater metropolitan area. Sure no problem.. The only thing I had going for me was that the Victorian houses were so distinct.**

Angeline groaned "There she goes again"

**If I could find some historical society,**

"And there she continues" Angeline made a huge deal of covering her ears.

**there was a good chance they could direct me toward areas matching that description. It would narrow my search considerably.**

"Is she done talking about history?" she asked Sonya and she just nodded in amusement. I just kept ignoring Angeline.

**I reached my gate at LAX an hour before the scheduled flight, I'd just gotten cozy with Ms. Terwilliger's book when an overhead announcement declared, "Paging passenger Melrose. Please come see a customer service agent."**

**I felt a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Gathering up my things, I approached the desk and was greeted by a cheery airline representative.**

"**I'm sad to tell you this flight has been overbooked," she said. From her peppy voice and big smile, she didn't seem sad at all.**

"Well at least you got another flight booked that same day, considering you arrived in time for the wedding" said Sonya.

"**What's that mean for me, exactly?" I asked, my dread growing. "I have a confirmed seat." I dealt with bureaucracy and red tape all the time, but overbooking flights was something I'd never understood.**

"What is it that you don't understand? That there happen to be a shit load of people wanting to take that same flight?" responded Rose to my thought.

I sighed "No that's not it, I say it in the next line I believe. Please continue Sonya"

**How did that even happen? It wasn't like the number of seats was a surprise to them.**

"**It means that you're no longer on the flight," she explained. "You and a couple other volunteers gave up your seats to accommodate that family. Otherwise, they would've had to be split up."**

"I don't know about their definition of "volunteer" but I'm pretty sure it means someone who freely offers to do something by own choice, not being forced by someone else" I said looking back at that day.

"**Volunteers?" I repeated, following her gesture. Off to the side of the seating area, a family with seven children smiled back at me.**

"Seven children? Damn, they couldn't keep it in their pants" said Christian.

**The children were tiny and adorable, with big eyes and the cuteness you saw in musicals about orphans finding new homes. Outraged, I turned back toward the agent. "How can you do that? I checked in way ahead of time! I have a wedding to get to. I cant miss it."**

"Sage, why so cold? You should have been happy, filled with enjoyment to have gotten the chance to volunteer to accommodate that sweet _sweet_ familyto have had the chance to be together, like a true family is supposed too" Adrian said with fakeness. I rolled my eyes, he could care less about the family, he's just happy about the circumstances that led to us being together in the same plane.

**The woman produced a boarding pass. "We've more than made up for it. We've booked you another flight, to Philadelphia-one that's leaving sooner. And you've even been upgraded to first class for you're inconvenience."**

"Nice! First class! You should have been happy!" said Rose.

"Right?" responded Adrian and Rose nodded with a small amount of awkwardness.

"**That's something," I said. I was still annoyed at this, simply out of principle. I liked order and procedure. Altering those threw off my world. I looked down at the boarding pass and then did a double take. "It's leaving now!"**

**She nodded. "Like I said, sooner. I'd hurry up if I were you."**

"She could have been more specific" I uttered.

**Then, on cue, I heard a last-call announcement for my new flight, saying all passengers need to be on board now, as they were about to shut the cabin doors. I wasn't the swearing type, but I almost was then-**

"You know, just because you're not the swearing type, doesn't mean you can't say it once in a while" Rose looked at me with all seriousness.

**Specifically when I saw that my new gate was on the opposite side of the terminal. Without another word, I grabbed my things and sprinted toward the gate as quickly as I could, making a mental note to write a letter of complaint to the airline. **

"Not surprised you're one of those people" said Eddie. I frowned in confusion.

**Through some miracle, I made it just before my new flight was closed to passengers, though the agent working that gate sternly told me that next time, I should plan ahead and allow more time. **

Jill sighed "If only she knew Sydney"

**I ignored her and headed into the airplane, where I was greeted by a much nicer flight attendant-especially when she saw my first class ticket. "You're right here, Miss Melrose," she said, pointing to the third row of the cabin. We're so glad you could join us."**

"Of course, anybody with money are treated like royalty" said Rose, and later added "Kiss-ass bastards"

"No they're not" responded Lissa and Rose gave her a look. "Ok… maybe… for the most part"

**She helped me out my suitcase in the overhead bin, which proved to be pretty difficult since other, earlier passengers had taken up most of the space. It required some creative knowledge of spatial relations, and when we finally managed it, I practically passed out in my seat, exhausted from this unexpected flurry of excitement.**

"If you would have passed out, I would've awaken you with a kiss"

**So much for a relaxing trip. I had just enough time to fasten my seat belt before the plane began backing up. Feeling a little steadier, I plucked the safety card from its pocket so that I could follow along with the attendant's presentation. No matter how many times I flew, I always thought it was important to be up to speed on procedures. I was watching the attendant fasten an oxygen mask when a familiar and intoxicating scent washed over me. In all of the chaos of making this flight, I hadn't even bothered to pay attention to my seatmate.**

**Adrian.**

"Wow. What are the odds?" said Lissa grinning.

"Same thing I said"

"Fate was with us that day" Adrian looked amused, apparently, he still found that whole situation to be humorous. But now that I thought of it, it was a bit funny.

**I stared in disbelief. He was watching me with amusement and had no doubt been waiting to see how long it would take me to notice him. I didn't even bother asking what he was doing here. I'd known he was flying out of LAX, and through some wacky twist of happenstance, I'd been bumped to his flight.**

"Happen- what?" asked Angeline.

"Happenstance: an occurrence, coincidence"

"Thank you, your thoughts and yourself are such a great help when it comes to homework" she said and I frowned in irritation at the fact that I've been fooled into doing her homework… again.

"**This is impossible," I exclaimed. The scientist in me was too amazed to fully realize the uncomfortable nature of the situation I now found myself in. "It's one thing to for me to get moved to a new flight. But to end up next to you? Do you know what the odds that are? It's incredible."**

Everybody seemed to be grinning at my awkward in-counter.

Rose looking amused "I would've paid money to have seen your reaction live, that's kind of funny"

"Well it wasn't, it was a very uncomfortable situation, but mostly I was really astonished that out of all the seats, I got the one next to Adrian."

"Come on Sage, you know deep down you were jumping with joy at the sight of me."

I snorted. "Barely"

"**Some may call it fate," he said. "Or maybe there just aren't that many flights in Philadelphia." He raised a glass of clear liquid to me in a toast. Since I'd never seen Adrian drink water, I had to assume it was vodka. **

"I've drank water before"

"_Really_?" not quite believing him. "When?"

"When I was nine" I raised my eyebrows. "True story' He added looking serious.

"**Nice to see you, by the way."**

"**Um, you too."**

**The engines roared to life around us, momentarily sparing me from conversation. Reality began sinking in. I was trapped on a five-hour flight with Adrian Ivashkov.**

"The amazingly handsome, Adrian Ivashkov, you may say" Adrian said in his arrogant way.

_**Five hours.**_

"With the charmingly striking Adrian"

**Five hours**

"With the greatness that is Ivashkov"

**sitting only a few inches from**

"That breathtaking good-looking Moroi"

**him, smelling his overpriced cologne and looking into those**

"Impressive green-"

"Adrian!" I interrupted.

**Knowing eyes. What was I going to do?**

Adrian looked like he was about to say something, but I shot him down with a stare.

**Nothing, of course. There was nowhere to go, nowhere to escape since even first-class passengers weren't allowed parachutes. My heart began to race as I frantically groped for something to say. He was watching me in silence, still with that small smirk, waiting for me to lead the conversation.**

"**So," I said at last, staring at my hands. "How's, uh, your car?"**

"Are you shitting me?" exclaimed Rose. "I mean, I don't exactly approve of you two, mostly due to the fact about the whole friend-kissing-friend's-ex-boyfriend, but was that the best you could do?"

"Yes, I love his car" I replied bluntly.

Christian looked at Adrian "Burn, she likes your car more than you"

"That's not what I-

"I am so jealous! I'm going to have to throw my car at the junk yard"

"No! Don't you dare Ivashkov!" I responded quickly.

Smirking at me "I was joking " he said. I blushed.

"**I left it out in the street. Figured it'll be fine there while I'm gone."**

**I jerked my head up, jaw dropping. "You did **_**what? **_**They'll tow it if its left there overnight!"**

"So much love for a stupid car" Angeline said with her bored expression.

"Its not stupid, its one of the most insulting things you could ever say to a beautiful car."

"Whatever"

**Adrian was laughing before I even finished. "So that's what it takes to get a passionate reaction, huh?" He shook his head. "Don't worry, Sage. I was just kidding. It's tucked away safely in my buildings parking lot."**

"Typical Adrian, antagonizing women" said Lissa shaking her head.

"Hey! I've only antagonized certain women" That comment put me on ease, remembering all those other women before me. He must've seen it in my aura because he gave me a reassuring smile.

**I felt my cheeks burn. I hated that I'd fallen into his joke and was a little embarrassed that I'd flipped out over a car. Admittedly, it wasn't just any car.**

"Here she goes, about to talk about a stupid car… blah, blah, blah…" Angeline said in her non-changing bored expression. I glared at her and she ignored me.

**In fact, he'd bought it to impress me, pretending he couldn't drive manual transmission in order to spend more time with me while I taught him. I thought the car was amazing, but it still astonished me that he would have gone to that much trouble for us to be together.**

"I did it all for you" all the girls in the room gave a semi-long "Aw" while Christian and Eddie just rolled their eyes.

**We reached our cruising altitude, and the flight attendant returned to get Adrian another drink. "Anything for you, miss?" she asked.**

"**Diet Coke," I said automatically.**

"Ugh, Diet Coke" said Rose with a disgusted look.

**Adrian tsked once she was gone. "You could've gotten that for free back in coach."**

**I rolled my eyes. "Do I have to spend the next five hours being harassed? If so, I'll go back in coach and let some lucky person 'upgrade' to my seat."**

**Entertaining himself turned out to be doing a crossword puzzle in one of the in-flight magazines.**

"Really Adrian? Was that your idea of _entertainment_?" asked Christian.

"Not really, I didn't do it for me" he glanced at me.

**I took out Ms. Terwilliger's book and tried to read, but it was hard to focus with him beside me.**

"I have that effect on people"

**I kept sneaking glances out of the corner of my eye, partly to see if he was looking at me and partly just to study his features. He was the same Adrian as ever, annoyingly good looking with his tousled brown hair and sculpted face. **

"I didn't know I was that good looking"

I rolled my eyes "You know it perfectly well, since you spend half your time talking about your looks"

"What would I be if I didn't talk about my looks?"

"Not arrogant"

"Fair enough"

**I vowed I wouldn't speak to him, but when I noticed he hadn't written anything in a while and was tapping his pen loudly on the tray, I couldn't help myself.**

"My plan worked perfectly"

"What plan?" I asked

"The plan in which I do something boring like a puzzle in order to get the opportunity to talk with you." he said always making me smile.

"**What is it?" I asked.**

"**Seven-letter word for 'cotton gin pioneer.'"**

"Whitney" said Dimitri

"_**Whitney**_**," I replied.**

"Smart my comrade" Rose looked at him.

**He leaned over and wrote in letters. "'Dominates the Mohs' scale.' Also seven letters."**

"Diamond" simply said Dimitri

"_**Diamond."**_

Rose leaning back on the couch "Puzzles are to complicated for me" Christian and Adrian looked at each other and seemed to be smiling at an inside joke.

**Five words later, I realized what was happening. "Hey," I told him. "I am **_**not**_** doing this."**

**He looked up at me with angelic eyes. "Doing what?"**

"**You know what. You're luring me in. You know I can't resist-"**

"**Me?" he suggested.**

"Somehow, I knew he was going to say something of that sort" responded Eddie.

**I pointed at the magazine. "Random trivia." I angled my body away from him and made a big show of opening my book. "I have work to do."**

"The way you show a guy that you're not interested is by punching him in the face… or better yet, you kick him in the-"

"I'm not a violent person" I interrupted Rose before she continued.

**I felt Adrian over my shoulder, and I tried to ignore how aware of his proximity I was. "Looks like Jackie's still got you working hard in her class." Adrian had me Ms. Terwilliger recently and had somehow charmed his way into a first-name basis.**

"**This one's more like an extracurricular activity," I explained.**

"**Really? I thought you were pretty against doing any more with this stuff than you had to."**

"So this Terwllinger…

"Terwilliger" I corrected

"Right… forced you to do magic?" asked Rose

"Yes, because she believed I have what it takes to be a witch of greatness"

"A.K.A badass witch" added Adrian.

**I shut the book in frustration. "I am! But then she said-" I bit off the words, reminded myself that I shouldn't engage with Adrian any more than I had to. It was just too easy to slip back into old, friendly behaviors with him. It felt right when, obviously, it was wrong.**

"You know I'm a trustworthy person, you can tell me anything" No one argued with that.

"**Then what?" he prompted, voice gentle.**

**I looked up at him and saw no smugness or mockery. I didn't even see any of the burning hurt that had plagued me these last few weeks. He actually looked concerned, which momentarily distracted me from Ms. Terwilliger' s task. Seeing him this way contrasted drastically with what followed in the wake of our kiss. I'd been nervous at the thought of sitting with him on this flight, and yet, here he was, ready to support me. Why the change?**

"Because I care about you" answered Adrian sweetly. I smiled, he was the only person that can make me smile quite a lot in one day.

**I hesitated, unsure what to do. Since last night, I'd been turning her words and the vision over and over in my head, trying to figure out what they meant. Adrian was the only person who knew about my involvement with her and magic (aside form Jill), and until this moment, I hadn't realize how badly I was dying to discuss this with someone.**

"You could have talked to me. I am a very understanding person" said Rose.

"Yes, because you listen patiently and quietly before someone finishes their sentence" replied Christian sarcastically.

"I wouldn't have wanted Adrian and Jill to know, but Adrian somehow ended up in this mess"

"Maybe it was a good thing, so that way you wouldn't have had to go through it all by yourself" responded Sonya.

I thought about it "You're absolutely right"

**So, I cracked and told him the whole story of my desert adventure.**

**When I finished, I was surprised to see how dark his expression had become. "It's one thing for her to try to get you to learn spells here and there. But it's a totally different thing for her to drag you into something dangerous."**

**His ardent concern surprised me a little-but maybe it shouldn't have. "From the way she talked, though, it wasn't like it was her doing. She seemed pretty upset about… well, whatever all this means."**

**Adrian pointed at the book. "And that'll help somehow?"**

"**I guess." I ran my fingers over the cover and embossed Latin words.**

"Isn't Latin like a dead language?" asked Rose

"For Sydney it isn't" replied Eddie.

"It wouldn't be dead if more people took their time to learn it"

"Yeah, well I speak the one of the living" said Angeline

Adrian snorted "Barely" she shot him a glare.

**It has protection and attack spells- things that are a bit more hard core than what I've ever done. I don't like it, and these aren't even really advanced ones. She told me to skip those."**

"**You don't like magic period," he reminded me. "But if these can keep you safe, then maybe you shouldn't ignore them."**

**I hated admitting when he was right. It only encouraged him.**

"I'm pretty sure it takes less than agreeing with him to encourage him" uttered Christian.

"Well at least it doesn't take, me, begging on my knees for a girl" replied Adrian.

Christian was about to say something when Rose cut him off "Don't start you two" she warned them.

"**Yeah, but I just wish I knew what I was trying to stay safe from-no**

"You were trying to stay safe from no? asked Angeline.

"Let her finish"

**No. We can't do this."**

**Without even realizing it, I'd slipped into the way things used to be, talking to Adrian in that easy, comfortable way we had. In fact, I'd even been confiding him. He looked startled.**

"**Do what? I stopped asking you for crossword help, didn't I?"**

"Only you would think the less obvious" said Jill looking at Adrian.

**I took a deep breath, bracing myself. I'd known this moment was coming, no matter how much I wanted to put it off. I just hadn't expected it to come while on a plane ride.**

"**Adrian, we have to talk about what happened. Between you and me." I declared.**

"You guys are about to argue. " said the Queen with a sigh looking at me and Adrian. We just nodded.

**He took a moment to cinsider my words. "Well… last I knew, **_**nothing **_**was happening between you and me."**

**I dared to look at him. "Exactly. I'm sorry for what happened… what I said, but it was all true. We have to move past this and go on with our lives in a normal way. It's for the good of our group in Palm Springs."**

"Oh, so you decide what's good for us?" Asked Angeline.

"Yes"

"**Funny, I **_**have **_**moved past it," he said. "**_**You're **_**the one bringing it up."**

Rose looked at Adrian. "Liar" she said knowingly.

"I know" he replied.

**I blushed again. "But it's because of you! You've spent the last few weeks all moody and sulking, hardly ever talking to me. And when you do, there's usually some nasty barb in it." While recently having dinner at Clarence Donahue's. I'd seen one of the most terrifying spiders ever come crawling into the living room.**

"I hate spiders, they're so ugly." said Rose looking disgusted.

"I love spiders, they're so beautiful" Christian said sweetly with a hint of sarcasm.

"And you wonder why people think you're such a creep"

"I don't wonder. I _know._"

**Mustering all my courage, I'd caught the creepy little beast and set him free.**

"Ew, gross" Lissa said looking as disgusted as Rose did.

"That was pretty courageous though, I would have just killed it" said Eddie.

**Adrian's comment on my act had been, "Wow, I didn't know you actually faced down things that scared you. I thought your normal response was to run kicking and screaming from them and pretend they don't excist." **

"**You're right about the attitude," he said now, nodding along with my words. Once again, he looked remarkably serious. "And I'm sorry."**

"Admiting you're wrong is always the right thing to do" Dimirti said in a solemn way of his. Adrian just nodded awkwardly.

"**You… are?" I could only stare. "So… you're done with all of that… stuff? Done with,uh, feeling that way?" I couldn't bring myself to elaborate. **_**Done with being in love with me.**_

"You know, you can't stop someone from loving you" Rose said for what seemed like the first time, she looked serious.

"I know" I replied.

"**Oh no," he said cheerfully, "Not at all."**

"**But you just said-"**

"**I'm done with the putting," he said. "Done with being moody-well. I mean, I'm always moody. That's what Adrian Ivoshkov's all about. **

"Obviously" we all said.

**But I'm done with the excessive stuff. That didn't get me anywhere with Rose. It wont get me anywhere with you."**

Rose stiffened a bit at the mention of her name and past relationship.

"_**Nothing **_**will get you anywhere with me," I exclaimed.**

"**I don't know about that." He put on an introspective look that was both unexpected and intriguing. You're not as much of a lost cause as she was. I mean, with her, I had to overcome her deep, epic love with a Russian warlord.**

"I like that description of my comrade, I think I will use it" Dimitri only rolled his eyes at her.

**You and I just have to overcome hundered of years' worth of deeply ingrained prejudice and taboo between out two races. Easy."**

"Love can be strong" said Sonya.

"**Adrian!" I felt my temper beginning to flare. "This isn't a joke."**

"**I know. It's certainly not to me. And that's why I'm not going to give you a hard time." He paused dramatically. "I'll just love you whether you want me to or not."**

"Way to be a creep Adrian" Both Rose and Christian said at the same time.

"That's not how I meant it"

**The attendant came by with hot towels, putting our conversation on hold and allowing his slightly disturbing woeds to hang in the air between us. I was dumbfounded and couldn't muster a response until after she came back to collect the cloths.**

"**Whether I want you to or not? What on earth does that mean"**

"That he's a creeper" Both Rose and Christian responded again at the same time. They glared at each other.

**Adrian grimaced. "Sorry, That came off creepier than I intended. I just mean, I don't care if you say we can't be together. I don't care if you think I'm the most evil, unnatural creature walking the earth."**

Rose looked at me "No offense… but I find that sort of thing stupid alchemists logic"

"No its fine, I agree"

She looked bewildered and startled "What happened to the Sydney I met in Russia?"

"I'm not her anymore. Sorry"

"Don't be. I love it!" she jumped over to hug me.

It was my turn to be startled. I hugged her back awkwardly. Afterwards she went back to sit next to Dimitri.

**For the briefest moments, his choice of words threw me back in time, to when he'd told me I was the most beautiful creature walking the earth. Those words haunted me now, just as they had then. We'd been sitting in a dark, candlelit room, and he'd looked at me in a way that no one ever had-**

_**Stop it , Sydney. Focus.**_

Arrogantly, Adrian said "I know I'm such a distraction, but to this extent? Damn."

"**You can think whatever you want, do whatever you want," Adrian continued, unaware of my traitorous thoughts. There was a remarkable calm about him. "I'm just going to love you, even if it's hopeless."**

**I don't know why that shocked me as much as it did. I glanced around to make sure no one was listening. "I… what? No. You can't!"**

"If you say no to Adrian he'll say yes" said Jill.

"I've noticed"

**He tilted his head to the side as he regarded me carefully. "Why? It doesn't hurt you or anything. I told you I wont bother you if you don't want me to. And if you do, well, I'm all about that. So what's it matter if I just love you from afar?"**

**I didn't entirely know. "Because… because you can't!"**

"**Why not?"**

"Because he's crazy" said Christian.

"**You… you need to move on," I managed. Yes, that was a sound reason. "You need to find someone else. You know I don't-that I can't. Well, you know. You're wasting your time with me."**

"Its hard to move on to someone else when your heart is pulling you to another" Dimitri said from experience I guessed. Everybody in the room agreed.

**He remained firm. "It's my time to waste."**

"**But it's crazy! Why would you do that?"**

Christian shaking his head "Like I said, he's fucking crazy"

"**Because I can't help doing it," he said with a shrug. "And hey, if I keep loving you, maybe you'll eventually crack and love me too. Hell, I'm pretty sure you're already half in love with me."**

"**I am not! And everything you just said is ridiculous. That's terrible logic."**

"That's what Adrian Ivashkov is all about, terrible logic" responded Christian mockingly.

"At least its not a creepy pyromaniac"

"Hey! I embrace my creepiness"

"Sonya, please continue reading" I quickly said before they proceeded their banter.

**Adrian returned to his crossword puzzle. "Well, you can think what you want, so long as you remember-no matter how ordinary things seem between us-I'm still here, still in love with you, and care about you more than any other guy, evil or otherwise, ever will"**

"Aw, its even more romantic the second time!" cheerfully Jill said.

"**I don't think you're evil."**

"It's strange to have an alchemist who doesn't think we're evil" said Christian.

"**See? Things are already looking promising." He tapped the magazine with his pen again. "Romantic Victorian poetess.' Eight letters."**

**I didn't answer. I had been rendered speechless. Adrian never mentioned that dangerous topic again for the rest of the flight. Most of the time, he kept to himself, and when he did speak, it was about perfectly safe topics, like our dinner and the upcoming wedding. Anyone sitting with us would never have known there was anything weird between us.**

"You're so paranoid, always thinking about what the other people around you think" replied Jill.

I shrugged "It's a habbit"

**But **_**I **_**knew.**

**That knowledge ate me up. It was all-consuming.**

"I thought you loved knowledge?" asked Eddie

"I do. That was to much for me"

"This is amazing. Knowledge being to much for _Sydney_, the queen of nerds!" he said amazed.

"'Nerds' don't always want to know _everything,_ certain things should be unknown"

**And as the flight progressed, and eventually landed, I could no longer look at Adrian the same way. Each time we made eye contact, I just kept thinking of his words: **_**I'm still here, still in love with you, and care about you more than any other guy ever will. **_**Part of me felt offended. How dare he? How dare he love me whether I wanted him to or not? I had told him not to! He had no right to.**

"You are fully aware that love is an emotion, which means someone else can't control it from happening to another person" mentioned Jill.

"Yes I am fully aware of that, but those are just my thoughts"

"Weird thoughts" she uttered.

**And the rest of me? The rest of me was scared.**

"Oh come on Sage, besides me being a vampire that feeds on human blood, I am not scary at _all"_

"That's very comforting Adrian" Rose responded sarcastically.

"It is little dhampir" she seemed to brighten, surprisingly including Dimitri at the mention of her old nickname. I guss it was the fact that they're going back on friendly terms.

_**If I keep loving you, maybe you'll eventually crack and love me to.**_

**It was ludicrous. You couldn't make someone love just by loving them. It didn't matter how charming he was, how good looking, or how funny. An Alchemist and a Moroi could never be together. It was impossible.**

"I say fuck the rules! Its obvious you two like each other, I mean, I still don't exactly approve because of the whole "girl code" but I think you should give him a chance" said Rose. 'Oh Rose', I thought 'If you only knew'

_**I'm pretty sure you're already half in love with me.**_

_**Very **_**impossible.**

"This is the end of chapter two, who wants to read next?" asked Sonya.

"I will" said Dimitri

"Being brave my Russian warlord"

"Should have known you were being serious about that name" she just smirked at him.

"Lets begin, shall we?… Chapter three…"


End file.
